The fastest and easiest way to get what you want in current-day America is to be portrayed — or portray yourself — as a victim. Liberals love a victim as conservatives love apple pie, mom, and baseball. Or liberty.

Both ideological groups will defend what they love fiercely, albeit through vastly different methods. The latter group will defend with honor that which they hold dear simply because the affection is genuine. The former will use lies and misdirection not out of genuine concern for their charge, but rather the benefit to themselves for success in doing so.

To a vast many Americans, both the lives they have known and the stories of their ancestors’ lives are something they wish to continue, and that which they see slowly slipping away. They have seen first hand or been told on a knee of the immigrants that have built this nation into what it is…or was until a few short years ago. Those immigrants have succeeded and become us without the alleged benefit of advocates shrieking on every corner about how they have been unjustly discriminated against.

So what has changed? Today, Democrats have built for themselves a cottage empire — designed not to aid those they profess to champion, but rather to exploit for a continuance of power — that vilifies anyone who dares to speak the truth. The targets of liberal accusations to this effect have themselves become overly sensitized to criticism, and have sacrificed principle for acceptance.

This week, Newt Gingrich has shown us what courage under such fire looks like.

During Monday night’s Republican debate, moderator Juan Williams tried to get Gingrich to back-pedal on his recent criticism of President Obama. Gingrich has previously referred to Obama as the food stamp president, and Williams on Monday asked Gingrich if he was “seeking to belittle people” with such rhetoric. Rather than apologetically try to rephrase his criticisms, Gingrich firmly reiterated his meaning:

“The fact is that more people have been put on food stamps by Barack Obama than any president in American history … I believe every American of every background has been endowed by their creator with the right to pursue happiness. And if that makes liberals unhappy, I’m going to continue to find ways to help poor people learn how to get a job, learn how to get a better job and learn some day to own the job.”

When Gingrich finished his answer, the audience was on its feet, roaring its approval. Part of the reason for this is that, despite making the most noise, liberals are not the majority in this country. Most people want someone who will finally stand up to the political correctness running amok in America, and Gingrich has demonstrated a willingness to do just that. He has also shone a spotlight on the suffocating effects of liberal coddling of minorities, keeping them dependent rather than freeing their entrepreneurial spirits.

What Gingrich showed on Monday night is that he will not be put on the defensive against Obama when the Divider-in-Chief whips out the race card, nor when he launches into his heart rending class warfare. Newt has shown a desire to thoughtfully articulate the conservative principle of a hand up rather than a hand out. With that ability, Obama will be forced into policy debates with Gingrich, where he will lose badly.

This is the reason that the media is pulling out all the stops in an attempt to rip Gingrich from the top of the Republican nominee list, and why they continue to promote Romney in yet another bid to “McCain” us like they did in 2008. While the rest of the field had their rising moments — only to ultimately fall back down again — Newt has risen, fallen, and risen again. The latest Rasmussen poll from South Carolina is expected to show Gingrich leading Romney by 2 percentage points, 33%-31%.

There is still a long way to go to the nomination, but the thought of a president who refuses to bow has a nice feel to it.